Cat Fanciers Deck The Halls At Holiday Show

While most of you were fighting traffic and crowds the last shopping weekend before Christmas, my holiday spirit took me in a different direction.

I went to a cat show.

And what a show it was. The annual holiday extravaganza, sponsored by the Straight & Curl Cat Club, drew 225 of the country’s finest felines to the Lebanon Expo Center. The hall was aglow with Christmas decorations and cheerful exhibitors who enjoyed a bounty of food—even a wine and cheese tasting – as their pampered puddies waited their turn in the ring.

The four-legged competitors seemed to enjoy festivities as well, spending most of their time in lavishly appointed quarters as owners doted upon them with everything from baby food to “the best of” cat toys on the planet. I swear the only thing missing were flat screen TV’s.

Seriously. I’ve never seen so many happy cats under one roof. In fact, I don’t

View full size"Cacao", a Norwegian Forest cat enjoys a snack between classes

remember hearing any meows or hisses the whole afternoon.

From mammoth Maine Coons to sleek Siamese, the furry stars included long and shorthaired breeds, with classes for adult cats, kittens, and my personal favorite, household pets. That’s right, anyone can enter their pet cat in a show. The only restriction is kitty cannot be declawed.

What’s more (and the dog show community could learn something from this), there’s a separate judging category, called “Premiership” for spayed and neutered purebred cats. Exhibitors in this division say altered cats are much easier to handle, tend to show better, have nicer coats, and are happy being pets.

Apparently, intact purebreds competing in the Championship category sometimes find “dating” a little more interesting than showing. Enough said there….

The differences between a dog show and cat show really struck me. Judging is entirely different and, to me anyway, a lot more fun to watch since the judges actually speak and play with the cats while evaluating them.

The competition doesn’t seem to be as cut throat either. Owners were relaxed, jovial, and took their losses with little more than a shoulder shrug. Pre-ring grooming was less extreme with most kitties receiving no more than a few swipes of the comb before their class.

How Judging WorksOfficiating were six judges, each with his/her own “stage” to individually evaluate each cat. The classes rotate so that each judge examines every cat at some point through the day. So, if 225 cats doesn’t sound like many, remember we’re talking 1,350 individual examinations.

And that’s the fun part. A gallery of seats for spectators faces each judging station. Owners place their cats in temporary cages behind the “stage” where they await their turn to be teased up a tall sisal post with a feather toy and be cooed at and stroked by the judges who clearly enjoy their task. Once judging is completed for each class, the kitties are whisked back to their luxury housing until called to the next ring.

View full sizeTop household pet "Echo" was rescued from a Syracuse shelter

Pet Cats Steal HeartsWhile I found myself drawn to the Norwegian Forest Cats (the breed my kitty Freddy most closely resembles), the most memorable competition of all was among pet cats. All but one was rescued from a shelter or SPCA, each with its own story.

The overall winner, deemed top cat by the judging panel, was a robust brown-patched tabby named Echo, who was turned into a Syracuse SPCA because the owner had allergies. As I petted this sweet girl, owner Angela Farrell of Syracuse, NY, gently splayed her paws to show she had an extra toe on each foot – in other words a “polydactyl”, which is a fault in regular conformation but totally acceptable in household pets.

the only judge from the midstate, and a 16-year veteran, explained it very simply. “They need to be clean, not declawed, in good condition and happy. That’s about it!”

Of course, not all cats will cotton to a weekend on the road or being handled by strangers, but happiness was the name of the game at this festival of felines. One exhibitor remarked, “What could be better than spending a whole weekend being with my cats, fellow fanciers, and talking cats?”.